Chapter 58: The Sorcerer

"Are you sure the water's safe?" Glimmer asked, wiping sweat from her brows.

"I didn't detect any magic on the bottle," Castaspella replied.

The princess eyed her water bottle, then frowned. "I can manage until we reach the ship."

"I assure you, it's safe."

"I'm just…" Glimmer shook her head. "What if the enemy sorceress cast a spell on my bottle that no one noticed? They had a clear shot at me and didn't take it."

Seacat shook her head. "If we can't trust your own aunt, then we'll have trouble reaching the First One base without water to drink."

"I could build a machine that extracts water from the air!" Entrapta piped up. "With those bots, I should have enough parts."

Seacat shifted the bot head she was carrying from one shoulder to another. "And how heavy would that machine be?"

"Uh…" Entrapta briefly nibbled on her lower lip, then smiled. "I can build a bot to carry it! A water bot!"

"Wouldn't that be the first target in an ambush?" Adora asked. She hadn't any trouble carrying a complete bot. Well, complete except for the split head.

Seacat gritted her teeth and took a deep breath before continuing her walk. The faster they were out of this jungle, the better.

Even though she knew they would have to return to it as soon as Entrapta had analysed the bots and found a way to stop them or control them.

"So… should I build a water-bot?" Entrapta asked.

"I can't hurt," Glimmer replied. "And even if it draws fire, better a bot than one of us."

Well, you couldn't argue with that. And Seacat would be lying if she claimed that she wasn't concerned about their drinking water getting poisoned by magic. She had once almost died from thirst; she didn't want to repeat the experience. "Yes, but do it after you analyse the bots," she told the princess.

"Great! And if I have parts left, I can build a carrier-bot!"

"A carrier-bot?" Seacat asked before she could help herself.

"A bot to carry cargo and supplies. If we had one, we could've taken a lot more parts with us!"

Oh. That sounded… actually like a good idea. "And we could use it to transport any wounded."

"Oh, right." Entrapta scrunched her nose and hummed something. "I might need armour, then, to protect the wounded. That means the overall carrying capacity would be less than planned unless I upgrade the legs and engine…"

Seacat sighed and prodded the princess to keep her on the path Adora was cutting - they weren't taking the same path back to the ship to avoid another ambush. If this continued, they'd have their own bot army. Well, not with the number of parts they were carrying.


A little later, back on her ship, Seacat finally allowed herself to relax. The water hadn't been poisoned. But it could've been. If someone could poison the water supplies of a frigate outside the reef, they certainly could do the same to a courier anchored right off the island's beach.

She tuned out the sounds of Entrapta and Bow working on the bot parts strewn across the hold and stared at the island off the Victory's Daughter's bow. The crater - the caldera - was so close. Two hours, tops, on foot. Three if you had to drag Castaspella with you - the woman wasn't fit enough to keep pace with the rest.

"So…" Adora joined her at the railing, rolling her neck and stretching her arms over her head. "What do you think?"

"Huh?" Seacat blinked. Adora's stretching had had interesting effects on her chest and shirt. "About?"

"The enemy."

"Oh. You mean, why did they withdraw?" Seacat tilted her head.

"Yes."

"Perhaps they ran out of power?" Seacat shrugged. "If they needed some First One crystal to power themselves…"

"Wouldn't they have retreated earlier? Withdrawing when you're out of supplies is a recipe for disaster."

"Force Captain orientation?" Seacat asked.

"You know I never had that," Adora replied, pouting. "No, officer school."

"Perhaps they weren't trained like you were?" Seacat suggested.

"They had good tactics, though."

"Right." Seacat shrugged again. "Then I'm out of ideas."

"Me too," Adora said. "And I don't like it. I hate it when I can't figure out the enemy."

"Well, you had an advantage before, having had Horde training," Seacat told her with a grin. "Welcome to how everyone else has to deal with enemies."

Adora laughed at that. But both knew this wasn't a good thing. It would be much, much easier if they were fighting Horde deserters instead of whoever was facing them.


"Alright! We've finished analysing the bot network!" Entrapta announced the next morning as she climbed out of the hold. "And I think we found - with Castaspella's help - a way to disrupt the network." She beamed. "We can test that next time we go into the jungle."

"I'd rather test it before our next trip into the jungle," Mermista commented.

"But then the enemy could adapt to our plan," Glimmer retorted. "We'd lose the advantage of surprise."

"And if it doesn't work?" Mermista asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"Then we're no worse off - better, actually, since we won't count on it working," Glimmer explained. "We need to reach the First One's base."

Seacat nodded. The fate of Etheria depended on it. And, she added with a glance at her lover, Adora's fate. Seacat knew Adora blamed herself for this. If they couldn't solve this… "So," she spoke up, "how long until we're ready for the next expedition?"

"Uh… I think Castaspella and Bow need to rest," Entrapta said.

Come to think, the two hadn't left the hold yet. Seacat took a step ahead and peered through the hatch. Bow was slumped over some bot, snoring, and Castaspella was sprawled on a mattress, asleep despite the slight motions from the waves. "Yes," Seacat said in a dry tone, "I think they need to rest. Did you work through the night?"

"Yes? It was important, wasn't it?" Entrapta looked bewildered.

"It was," Seacat assured her. "But… aren't you tired as well?"

"I was, but my enhanced tiny tea solved that!" The princess beamed at her.

Seacat knew she shouldn't ask, but she had to know. "'Enhanced tiny tea'?"

"I distilled a whole pot of tea into a tiny pot of tea! Several times!"

"Ah." Seacat forced herself to smile. They'd have to wait until Entrapta fell asleep and then woke up again before they could start their next attempt to reach the caldera. Well, there wasn't much they could do about that.

"So, I'll start on the water-bot now!"

Not much except for keeping an eye on Entrapta and hoping she wouldn't break the ship or herself when she collapsed.


Seacat sighed as she looked at the dark night sky. Entrapta had finally collapsed in the afternoon, falling asleep while trying to dismantle another bot. Just about the time Castaspella and Bow woke up. But without Entrapta being rested, they couldn't go to the caldera. And Seacat preferred to reach the First Ones' base with daylight to spare, anyway.

But it meant another night standing watch on deck. And with more people than normal, too - so close to the island, anything else would be too dangerous. She looked at the bow, where Alcy was checking the hull on her round. And at Emily - the bot was covering the entire main deck with her turret. Seacat grimaced at the thought of what a shot would do to the deck or rigging, but as long as the bot used canister shot, it shouldn't sink the ship. A few small holes were a small price to pay to catch an intruder, anyway.

The carrier-bot and the water-bot Entrapta had managed to build before she collapsed were still in the hold - Seacat didn't trust them to behave on deck. Not without seeing them in the field.

She turned to watch the shore again. Even in the dim light, she could clearly see the sand and rocks. But that didn't mean she would be able to spot an enemy sorceress or sorcerer - not when they were using spells Castaspella had never encountered. And had been able to poison the water of a Horde frigate. At least they should be out of the range of most spells. But she had no doubt that they were being watched. A smart enemy would keep their eyes on the Victory's Daughter - and their unknown enemy was smart. Too smart for Seacat's taste.

Ah well. Another hour, then Sea Hawk would relieve her, and she could return to her bunk and sleep on top of Adora. Just… She froze. That series of splashes… it could've been a school of fish jumping out of the water, but...

She quickly scanned the sea. All was calm… no. The waves were different - there were ripples in the water. Fading quickly while the waves kept on, but she could see them. And the line they formed from shore to the ship. As if someone had skipped a stone on a lake…

Cursing, she jumped down on the main deck, then sped to the hatch leading down to the hold. "Alcy! Check the hull!" If that had been an attack on the hull…

She reached the hatch and stared down. Nothing… wait! Something was moving there in the shadows. Someone! She jumped down the hatch, drawing her blade a moment before she landed in a crouch. "Alarm! Boarders!" she yelled as she charged a figure dressed in a ragged cloak.

The figure whirled, and a light flashed. Seacat dived to the side, but she wasn't quick enough. Something hit her shoulder, and she was thrown back by the blast.

She kept her grip on her sword, though, and rolled with the punch, her claws digging into the deck to stop her before she hit the ladder leading up on deck. And the others were waking up.

The man - she saw a beard poke out from underneath their hood - moved his staff, and Seacat rolled to the side, evading another spell that blew up a barrel behind her. She rolled over her shoulder, tucked her legs in, then pushed off and launched herself forward, blade flashing.

Her sword stuck a glowing barrier, sliding off, and she barely managed to raise her left arm to keep from crashing head-first into it. Even so, the impact hurt her already struck shoulder, and she screamed with pain as she fell down, her blade skidding over the deck.

Once more, the man moved his staff. Too close to dodge. She saw his eyes flash and glow as the barrier faded. Seacat clenched her teeth and rolled forward, hitting the man's legs and making him stumble. She lashed out with her claws, but he jumped back, and she only ripped a strip off his cloak.

"Captain!" Alcy was there, jumping down into the hold as well.

"Watch out!" Seacat snapped - but Alcy was already dodging to the side as the man sent another spell at her.

"Seacat!"

"Ca-Seacat!"

"Captain!"

The others were coming! Seacat flashed her fangs. They had the bastard cornered now! She dashed forward, trying to ignore her hurting shoulder, but another barrier stopped her.

Then Glimmer, Bow and Castaspella appeared in a cloud of sparkles in the middle of the hold, and the man seemed to freeze. His lips moved, but Seacat couldn't hear any words - she couldn't hear him at all, she realised. He didn't make any sound. But she saw glowing symbols on his exposed skin.

Castaspella waved her hands, and red spells splashed against the man's barrier. In return, the intruder slammed his staff on the deck, and smoke filled the hold. "Watch out!" Seacat yelled, rolling to the side. She had to get around those barriers!

She heard Castaspella mutter a word, and the hold cleared at once - just in time for Seacat to see the cloaked boarder fade through the hull. She gasped, turned - and raced up the ladder to the main deck.

"What's going on?" Sea Hawk asked as she dashed past him to the railing.

"There!" Another line of ripples showed the man's flight back to the shore. Seacat whirled. If she was quick enough… But by the time she reached the swivel gun, the man had already disappeared into the jungle.

She muttered a curse under her breath.

"Seacat! Are you alright?"

"What?" Seacat turned to face Adora. Why would she…? Oh. Seacat's shirt was torn. And she was bleeding. She hadn't even realised that.

"You're hurt!"

"Yes," she agreed.

Adora was already pointing her sword at her. A moment later, magic washed over Seacat's body, and the pain vanished. The shirt was still ruined, though.

"Check our water supply!" she bellowed. "The bastard managed to sneak on board by going through the hull, like a ghost!"

"A ghost?" Licy, standing there in her underwear and with a sword in hand, gasped.

"Like a ghost," Seacat repeated herself. "Some spell."

"It's not teleportation," Castaspella said. "The intruder must have found a way to render themselves intangible."

"Himself. I saw his beard," Seacat said.

"You did?"

She grinned, pointing at her eyes. "I can see better than you, remember?"

But not well enough to spot the boarder before he got into the ship.

"Well, I guess we know now how he managed to reach the frigate," Adora said. "At least he can't turn himself invisible."

"He might be able to do that as well," Castaspella said. "There are several illusions which allow such a feat, though most limit your movement."

Seacat frowned. More bad news. "What about the water?"

The sorceress frowned. "I'll go check."

Seacat turned to Alcy and Licy. "Check the hull! If the boarder sabotaged us, we need to know. Entrapta, check the engine." She looked at Horas. "Stand guard. Keep an eye on the water - the bastard leaves ripples when he skids over the water." Oh. "Mermista! Can you feel if someone skips over the water?"

The princess, also in her underwear, like Sea Hawk, frowned. "It's harder with the waves, but I can do it. It'll tire me out, though."

Seacat thought for a moment. "Do it. We are vulnerable. We can relieve you once we know the ship's OK. We need to know what the bastard wanted on the ship. And whether or not he managed it."

But even if they had prevented him from doing whatever he wanted, the sorcerer had already managed to ruin their sleep. Entrapta's use of enhanced tiny tea had let everyone rest during the day while they waited for her to catch up, but it would still affect them.

Seacat really hated smart enemies.


In the morning, Seacat felt better. The water hadn't been poisoned - she must have caught the intruder before he managed to do whatever he did to the Horde frigate's water. The hull hadn't been damaged, either - not even where the bastard had faded through it; Castaspella and Entrapta had thoroughly examined the entire area. According to both, the 'structural integrity' of the ship wasn't affected. They were back on track - so to speak - for the expedition. And they did have a carrier-bot and a water-bot.

But the bastard was waiting for them in the jungle. Seacat knew it - she felt it in her guts. Somewhere in that corrupted forest, he was waiting for them with his spells and bots.

She gripped the railing harder and bared her fangs as she looked at the treeline at the shore, then at the upper edge of the caldera. He wouldn't stop them. They could counter his bots, and Castaspella could counter his spells. Otherwise, the bastard wouldn't have retreated when he was caught in the Victory's Daughter's hold.

"This will work, Seacat."

Seacat turned. Sea Hawk joined her at the railing. "Of course it will," she said.

"I mean it. You've driven off the enemy twice, and third time's the charm, isn't it?" He beamed at her.

"And what if that means the third time he'll win?" Seacat raised her eyebrows at him.

"Oh." The Captain blinked, then laughed. "I think you're too skilled for that to happen. He ran from you."

"He ran from all of us," Seacat retorted.

"Well, we could all go on this expedition…"

"No." That would leave the ship - her ship! - unguarded. "We've got a plan, and we'll stick to it. We just have to reach the caldera and find the base." She snorted. "And if we have to wreck more bots, we'll let Entrapta build more bots from it until we outnumber them."

Sea Hawk grabbed her shoulders and laughed. "That's the spirit!" In a lower voice, he added: "But be careful. Please"

"Of course. Who was the voice of reason amongst our crew, huh?" Seacat cocked her head to the side as she smiled at him. And blinked twice.

"Good." Sea Hawk nodded and released her.

She nodded in return, then bellowed: "Alright! Get the longboat into the water!" they would have to take two trips with all the bots to ferry to the shore. And they were wasting daylight already.


"We could've taken the same path we took the first time," Glimmer commented half an hour later, halfway to the ridge of the caldera.

"The enemy would've expected that," Seacat retorted.

"They would've expected us to pick a new route, so picking the same route would've fooled them," Glimmer objected.

"They would've covered the old route anyway," Adora cut in without looking back from where she was cutting down the underbrush. "They have enough bots. And they'll wait closer to the top, so they have more time to react to our movements."

"We haven't spotted any bot so far," Bow pointed out - the man was standing close to Adora, keeping an eye on the jungle ahead.

"That doesn't mean that there weren't any," Adora pointed out.

"Actually," Entrapta commented from behind them, where she sat on top of Emily, "my detector hasn't pinged on any networked bot yet. So… they could've sent some non-networked bot to scout us, but that would mean they had to walk back to report, which would make their reports late and leave tracks. So…. they might not have spotted us."

That was encouraging. Seacat smiled and wiped some sweat from her face.

"Unless, of course, they are watching from above us," Entrapta went on. "They could be tracking us through vibrations, too, as we walk - and seismic detectors would likely be common in any base inside an old volcano. Or use magic, I guess."

"I haven't detected any spells so far," Castaspella, who was 'resting' on the carrier-bot, said. "But if they know spells that I don't know…"

"The forest will be telling them where we are," Perfuma pointed out. "The plants can sense us and relay that."

"I guess there's no need to try and sneak up on them, then." Seacat forced herself to smile. She had been expecting that - this was the enemy's home base, after all. They had had months to prepare. And anyone who'd raze a port would do worse to drive off intruders from their island.

"Good. I'm not good at sneaking, anyway," Adora said. She briefly turned to Seacat and smiled. "And we know we can beat them in an open fight."

They expected to beat the enemy, at least. And they would soon find out if they were right.

Only, no attack came as they climbed the slopes of the old volcano. Soon, the jungle grew less dense. Less suitable for an ambush. And then they saw the ridge above them, a few hundred yards away, with only scraggly bushes and some thin trees covering the steep slopes.

"Yes!" Adora exclaimed and stepped forward, sheathing her sword. "Look, guys! We've made it! Just a little..."

"Uh-oh," Entrapta interrupted her, "I just got a ping on the network."

Seacat clenched her teeth. "Where?" she snapped.

"Uh… lemme check… ahead of us. Lots of messages - commands. But… climbing? They're just saying 'Up!', nothing more."

'Up!'? "Are they on the other side of the ridge?" That would keep them out of sight. But wouldn't they hear them approach? Bots weren't exactly stealthy when they moved. Especially in large numbers. Seacat's ears twitched. There was something…

"Let's charge up the ridge!" Glimmer said. "Get the high ground before them!"

"Wait!" Seacat held up a hand. "I hear something!"

But it wasn't the sound of countless legs striking the ground. This was… more a grinding sound. Like…

Her eyes widened. "They're burrowing! They're in the ground!"

"What?"

Seacat dropped to the ground and pressed her ear against it, clenching her teeth at the sensation of wet earth. Yes. "They're beneath us!"

"And around us!" Perfuma added. "They are ripping through the roots!"

A moment later, bots were appearing all around them, shaking off dirt and small rocks as they broke the ground from below. Roots followed them, trying to grab and restrain the bots, but they were too slow to catch most of the bots.

"I'm going to start the override!" Entrapta announced, perched on Emily.

"Protect Entrapta!" Seacat yelled and rushed towards the closest bot. "And keep an eye out for the enemy sorcerer!" she added as she dodged a swipe from the bot's legs and cut its head off. Rolling over her shoulder, she jumped up, tucking her legs in to avoid another bot, and landed between three of them.

Whirling, her blade flashed, cutting legs all around her, but one connected with the back of her thigh before she could jump away. Hissing at the pain, she threw herself forward, below another bot that was climbing over a crippled one. She rolled to the side and stabbed up, her sword piercing the underbelly of the bot, then rolled on, just managing to get away before the collapsing bot fell on her.

Jumping up, she stumbled - her leg was hurt worse than she'd thought. A quick check with her free hand confirmed that she was bleeding pretty badly. Adora wouldn't be happy.

She snorted at her thought and slashed at two more bots, then glanced around. Plants had tied up a dozen bots, and between the Horde princess and Adora, the bots attacking them from the front were being dealt with.

But the ones hidden in the jungle… She clenched her teeth and moved to intercept a pair of them trying to cut Emily's legs. The large bot was firing its gun, blowing apart another bot, but it couldn't be everywhere. At least Castaspella was shielding the carrier-bot, but the water-bot… well, Entrapta would have to fix it after this.

Another bot charged Seacat and ended with steel through its ugly head for its attempt. Two more tried to flank her, but she slashed at one with her claws while she parried the attack from the other with her sword, then whirled to finish it.

And more were coming! Where was Bow? She couldn't see him. She slashed at two bots, driving them back, and looked up. Ah, he was in the canopy, looking for the sorcerer. Good. The two bots were joined by a third and attacked again. She beheaded the first and fell back. Her leg was slowing her down now - and was she leaving a trail of blood? She needed to bandage that leg. But she couldn't. Not with the bots attacking her.

She cut the forelegs off the next, but the second caught her blade, and she had to let it go before she was trampled. Hissing, she swiped her claws at it, cutting through legs, pincers and then its shell with her claws until it collapsed.

She bent to retrieve her sword and almost fell. This was… Really not good. She had to fall back. Have Emily guard her back.

She glanced over her shoulder. She was further away than she had thought - or had Emily moved? No matter.

She started running. Limping. A jump turned into a stumble, and she got almost gored by a bot attacking her from the side. She managed to twist away, but its pincers still left a bloody line on her side.

In return, she stuck her blade through the thing's head, then pushed off and dropped into a roll that carried her to the legs of Emily. Almost…

She pulled the rest of her shirt off and wrapped it around her leg while she hid beneath Emily. That helped. She wouldn't bleed out now. Not before this battle was over one way or the other, anyway.

"We need some help in the back!" she yelled.

"I'm on it!" Glimmer replied, jumping down on a bot nearby and smashing its head with her staff. "You're hurt!" the princess blurted out when she saw Seacat.

"I'm fine," Seacat replied, forcing herself to walk normally towards the next wave of bots. They must be coming from further away - the enemy couldn't have buried so many close by. They were still more than she had expected. Who had built all of them?

"Got it!" Entrapta yelled. "And… Done!"

A moment later, all the bots suddenly stopped moving.

"Turned them off!" the princess cheered. "And now I can command them!"

"Seacat's wounded!" Glimmer snapped. "Adora!"

"What? Coming!" Adora rushed towards them.

"Look, I'm…" Seacat started to say, but her lover didn't listen - she was already waving her sword at her.

A moment later, the pain in her thigh faded.

"See, that's…" Adora trailed off.

"What?"

"Your shirt!"

Oh. Seacat grinned. "Well, I had to…"

"Oh, no!" Entrapta interrupted her. "There's one bot not listening!"

"What?" Seacat whirled. They could take one bot. "Where?"

"Straight ahead!" Entrapta replied. "It's headed to the ridge! From the other side!"

Seacat turned. And froze for a moment.

The bot's head cresting the ridge was as big as Emily's entire body!

"Oh! That's a new model!" Entrapta said. "I wonder…"

Then the entire ridge crumbled under the bot's weight and started to slide down - towards their position.

"No!"

"Watch it!"

"Everyone, rally!"

Seacat cursed as she watched the avalanche of dirt and rocks race towards them, uprooting and smashing the trees in the way. This was…

Castaspella screamed a word Seacat didn't understand, and a yellow shield appeared in front of them. "Everyone behind it!" she yelled.

Except for Bow and the Horde princess, everyone was already behind the shield. And Bow was just jumping down from the tree he had been hiding in. The Horde princess, on the other hand, had been caught out in the open, too far from the shield. She was running, but there was no way she would make it. Seacat saw the woman's face - she knew it as well.

Next to her, Perfuma screamed: "Scorpia!"

Then Glimmer appeared next to the Horde princess, almost getting trampled, and a moment later, both disappeared in a flash of sparks - moments before the mass of dirt and rocks arrived where they had been.

The two princesses reappeared in a tangle of limbs in the middle of the group. "Ow!"

"Thanks, Glimmer!"

"Scorpia!"

"Everyone, get close to the shield! We need to stay together!" Castaspella snapped.

Racing towards the avalanche felt wrong, but the sorceress was right - if they were too far back, they would still be swept away and crushed. Seacat reached the shield and hunkered down, staring at the approaching wave of dirt, rocks and mud. If the shield broke…

Strong arms encircled her. Adora.

Seacat turned, grabbed her lover's head and kissed her a second before the avalanche hit the shield.

The wave of earth and stone smashed into it, then broke, flowing around it - and over it.

"Brace yourself!"

"Emily!"

"Stay down!"

Clumps of mud and dirt rained down on them, and everything went dark. Seacat held onto Adora even as her lover pushed her down and shielded her with her own body. She felt mud covering her leg, something hard hitting her foot, and a rock digging in her side as the avalanche swept over them, only the magic shield keeping them from being crushed and swept away.

But they were still buried. Someone had a light - Entrapta! She was using her device. Seacat panted as she looked around. At the shield, there was a small, a very small space that hadn't been filled by the mud and rocks, barely enough for everyone - Seacat wasn't the only one half-buried in the avalanche. But the air would run out soon.

Someone sobbed. Seacat couldn't tell who. Her ears were still ringing from the terrifying sound the avalanche had made.

"We need to get out!" Adora yelled.

"Just let me…"

Perfuma cut Glimmer off. "I'll handle it!"

And plants started to shoot out of the earth, pushing against the dirt and rocks above and around them. Forming webs and digging into the mass that had buried them.

"Hurry!" Castaspella said. "I don't know how much longer I can keep the shield!"

"I am hurrying," Perfuma replied with a tense expression. "We aren't buried deeply!"

And they weren't - the first rays of light started to appear as the plants burrowed through the ceiling. More dirt fell down on them, but Seacat didn't mind. They were saved. They wouldn't die buried alive.

Adora rose, pushing away the last parts of the shell of earth and mud that had tried to kill them, and raised her sword. "Yes!"

Seacat followed her, pulling her leg free - getting the mud out of her fur would be murder - and looked around. "No!"

The huge bot was coming at them, climbing down the ridge.

"Damn it!" Adora yelled. "Incoming!"

She was already charging the bot. Seacat cursed and followed her. They had to buy time for the others to rally.

The bot's head swung around to face them, and it opened its maw. Something glowed inside. Seacat's eyes widened. "Dodge!" she screamed, jumping to the side.

A lance of red light reached out, and the ground near her exploded. What the hell was that?

She rolled over the smashed ground, scrambled up and dashed forward again.

"Over here, you dumb bot!" she heard Adora yell. Her lover was waving her sword at the bot as she charged towards it, drawing its attention.

Seacat cursed under her breath. That idiot! She jumped over a jagged rock, landed on a slippery patch of dirt that almost sent her sprawling, and reached the bot's huge foreleg. She swung her sword, but the blade barely cut the thing's armoured shell.

Adora, on the other side, had more luck - but not much more. The leg showed a gap with sparks covering the edges, but it was still working.

"We need to strike at its vulnerable spots!" Adora yelled.

"Tell me something I don't know!" Seacat yelled back.

An arrow hit the thing's shell, splashing green ooze over it. Acid, Seacat realised - Bow's trick arrows. But the shell held.

"Rahhhh!" The Horde princess smashed into the thing's leg, pincers sliding off the metal. She tried to grab it but was swept away.

And the thing shot more red light at them, blowing up the ground and showering everyone with dirt and fragments of rocks. It was focusing on Adora - and missing so far.

It wouldn't miss forever, though. Seacat snarled and jumped, digging her claws into the bot's shell.

And she started to climb.

The armour of the giant bot was hard, much harder than usual Horde stuff. And much thicker than the armour on the smaller bots. But her claws still cut it, and all that the thicker armour meant was that climbing was easier. Not easy, though - the thing tried to shake her, then scrape her off with another leg, and Seacat had to jump and scramble around the leg to avoid getting squished.

"Seacat!"

"I'm OK!" she yelled back.

"What are you doing?"

"Killing a damn bot!"

She hissed as she reached the body of the bot, jumping off the twitching leg joint and landing on the bot's side. More explosions followed - she saw smoke and dust get thrown up from below, but none reached her. On the bot's back, she was pretty much out of its reach.

Kind of sloppy, actually, to design it like that. "I guess the First Ones weren't perfect," she mumbled as she approached the bot's head. All she had to do was open up the armour and then start cutting and slicing the stuff inside. Like a brainworm from the stories sailors spun to scare each other.

She was about to start cutting the head armour when she heard something behind her. Whirling, she saw two smaller bots charge her - and more coming up behind through an opening in the bot's back.

Cursing her own overconfidence, she cut the first apart with her claws, then kicked the second off the giant bot's back. That left… half a dozen coming at her.

No problem. She grinned and charged them, the claws on her feet ripping into the armour beneath her. The next bot lunged at her, and she moved to the side, letting it skid past her and off the shell as she sliced her claws through the head of the one behind it.

A kick sent another bot off to join the rest on the ground but left her encircled by three. She dropped down, flattening herself against the armoured shell to avoid their first attacks, and kicked out, breaking legs - and sending herself sliding off the giant bot's back. Pushing her claws into the armour stopped her descent but left her pinned down - and another bot jumped at her!

She gasped and pulled her claws out, letting her slide, then fall down the shell, and the bot missed, bounced off and fell past her before she drove her claws into the armour again to catch her fall.

"Seacat!"

Oh. Adora must have caught that. "I'm OK!" she yelled as she started her climb back up.

The last bot was coming at her - and it was climbing over the shell. Its legs clung to the armour like a real spider's.

Seacat's eyes widened. That meant… she glanced to her side. Yes. The bots she had kicked off were climbing up the giant legs. Damn!

She pushed herself, scrambling up the slope, towards the charging bot. She had to time this perfectly.

Clenching her teeth and hissing, she tensed, then, a second before the bot reached her, she threw herself to the side, raking her claws over the smaller bot's sides as it went past her.

Her claws caught on something, and for a second, she was pulled along before she managed to rip them out and catch herself. This bot, at least, was done for - she saw it explode as it hit the bottom.

That left… two that she could see. She hurried to reach the top of the bot's back before them. One of them almost beat her to it, but she was faster and dug her claws in before raking its head. It froze, sparks covering the tears her claws had left, then tumbled down, blowing up before it hit the ground.

One left! She hissed, her ears flattening, as she faced off with the last bot. Easy!

The thing charged her - they never learned - and she crouched to block and then claw it.

Then she was flying through the air. What…? She looked back - a cloud of smoke, like from an explosion, covered the part of the bot's back she had been standing on. How…?

Pain filled her. She had been blasted off the thing's back, she realised - the sorcerer! And she was falling.

"Ca-Seacat!"

She was trying to twist her body. Land on her feet. But her body wasn't cooperating. Damn, this would…

"Gotcha, wildcat!"

Arms closed around her, catching her. Not Adora's - hard ones. Pincers.

As they hit the ground, Seacat cradled in the bug princess's arms, she gasped.

She had been saved by the Horde princess!

Damn!

"She needs help!" the woman yelled.

"Ca-Seacat!"

"Someone get the sorcerer!" Seacat screamed. She could deal with the pain, but if that bastard struck again…

"He's on top of the ridge!" Bow yelled. At least one of them was on the job!

"Hold still!" Adora snapped, kneeling down next to her. When had the bug princess dropped her to the ground?

Then the now far too familiar feeling of magical healing filled her.

"There!" Adora beamed at her.

A moment later, Seacat's dumb lover was flung away by a giant leg.

"Adora!" Seacat screamed as she whirled. The giant bot was facing her, mouth cannon already glowing.

She dived to the side, rolling over her shoulder, and was showered with dirt as the ground blew up again behind her. Something struck her back, right into her kidneys, and she screamed with pain - but kept going. Caught between the sorcerer and the giant bot, they had to beat both or die.

"Glimmer!" she yelled. "Get me up to the bot's back!"

"What?"

There was the princess, ducking behind tree trunks. Seacat ran towards her, weaving to make herself a harder target. Another explosion, to the side. She flinched as she entered a dust cloud, almost stumbling on the uneven ground.

There! Glimmer was in front of her. "Teleport! Now!" Seacat blurted out. Behind her, the bot was already aiming again.

Glimmer grabbed her hand, and they disappeared.

And reappeared on the bot's back just as it shot at the ground where they had been before. Snarling, Seacat rammed her claws into the back of the bot's head, slicing through the armour.

"What do I do?" Glimmer asked.

"Keep the sorcerer from hitting me!" Seacat snapped back as she tore a fist-sized piece of armour out. She needed more to reach the bot's control unit.

"But… I can't stop a spell!"

"Be ready to get us out of the way, then!" Seacat replied, widening the hoe. She could already see the first crystals shining inside.

Any moment, the sorcerer would attack. She had to hurry - they couldn't last much longer. Even with Bow and Castaspella keeping the enemy busy. And Adora…

Seacat clenched her teeth. Adora was fine. She had taken worse than a kick. She killed sea monsters for fun.

Snarling, she stuck her arm through the hole and started shredding the crystals she could reach. The bot faltered but didn't fall. Not enough.

She pulled back and ripped into the armour again until she had torn a hole big enough to slip through.

"Let me!" Glimmer said, pushing against her side.

"What?"

But the princess had already stuck the tip of her shaft through the hole, baring her teeth.

A moment later, something blew up inside, and smoke started to escape through the hole.

And the giant bot stopped moving. For a second. Then it started to topple over.

Glimmer screamed, struggling with the staff, but Seacat grabbed her and jumped off the bot before it crashed to the ground.

One down. One to go. She dropped Glimmer to the ground and whirled, looking at the sorcerer.

The man was fighting both Bow and Castaspella, who looked exhausted. And Bow's arrows kept hitting magic shields. But now, with Scorpia no longer having to distract the bot from attacking Entrapta and Perfuma, they could focus on the sorcerer.

"Rahhh!"

And there was Adora, charging up the slope. Yes!

The sorcerer turned, stumbled for a moment - and an arrow slipped past his shield, hitting him.

No, ripping his cowl off - the man seemed unhurt. So close!

Then Castaspella gasped and sank to her knees. "Micah?"

"Micah?" Glimmer echoed, gasping as well.

Seacat knew she was missing something.